


Don't Leave Scars

by Ashes_And_Roses



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Chimera Edward Elric, Chimera Ling Yao, Fullmetal alchemist chimera au, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-17
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-05-24 17:36:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 20,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14959056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ashes_And_Roses/pseuds/Ashes_And_Roses
Summary: Edward Elric and Ling Yao have one thing in common; They are both chimeras.





	1. Chapter 1

“Fu, where are we going?” The young prince yawned as his bodyguard led him by the hand down a dark hallway.

“Hush, Ling. You’ll see soon.”

Ling nodded, hugging Chen, the stuffed impala he was carrying, closer to his chest. 

Today had been the prince’s fifth birthday, and the stuffed impala had been a gift from Lan Fan. He loved those animals so much he had almost cried tears of joy when his best friend had given him his present.

Fu stopped in front of a closed door, and knocked on it. Ling stared at the bright light seeping out from under said door. It was so late, why did someone still have the lights on? 

The door creaked as it opened, and a hand jutted out. The hand gripped the prince’s wrist tightly. Ling yelped as he was yanked into the room. 

The prince tumbled to the floor and whimpered.

Ling examined his surroundings, and found himself in a small room with two of the Yao clan’s best alkahestrists, and a giant chalk circle on the brown stone floors. In the middle of the chalk circle was an impala, the prince’s favourite animal, locked in a cage. 

The prince glanced back at the door to see Fu standing there, frowning. The old man stared at the floor, and muttered, “I’m sorry, my Lord, it’s for the crown.”

“F-Fu, what do… what do you mean?”

“Get the restrians,” One of the alkahestrists said.

One of the men stepped closer to the prince, towering over him. Ling’s body shook slightly as the man wrapped his wrists in large, thick ropes.

“Fu!” Ling screamed. “Help me, please!” 

Fu’s face twisted in guilt, but he did nothing to help. Tears started to form in the corner of the young prince’s eyes. 

“Please Fu!”

As the circle around the prince started to illuminate, and his screams grew louder and more pain-filled, Ling’s bodyguard grew closer to not being able to handle it. 

“Fu, pl-please! It-It hurts so-so much!”

Fu looked away, muttering, “It is for the crown,” before slamming the door shut. 

“No! Please!”

Unbearable pain serged through the young child. His mouth gradually filled with a warm liquid that tasted of iron. He coughed the liquid up, and stared at the pool of red in front of him. The circle grew brighter and brighter, and Ling grew weaker and weaker.

Searing pains shot through every inch of his small body, like millions of tiny needles stabbing the boy, over and over again. 

Before Ling lost consciousness, he heard one of the alkahestrists say, “No not tell about what we do for the crown.”

“Young Lord?” A familiar voice bounced around in Ling’s ears. He was unable to pinpoint whose voice it was. “Are you awake?”

The boy wanted to jump up, thrash about and cry in fear. He wanted to grab old man Fu and scream at him until he told him why. Why had they done this to him, what had they done to him? 

“Horns?” 

A tiny hand gripped something on the top of Ling’s head, and tugged upward. He yelped, suddenly finding the strength to reach up and cover the top of his head with his hands. The young prince felt something that hadn’t been there before; something small and pointed jutting out of his skull that he was sure hadn’t been there before. 

Ling peeled one of his eyes open, and turned his head to the side. He saw little Lan Fan standing next to his bed, a look of wonder on her face. 

“Ling, you have horns!” She smiled.

“Wh-What?” He replied quietly.

“The young Lord is a chimera now.” Fu’s voice echoed in the prince’s ears. 

“What does that mean? Lan Fan asked with typical child-like curiosity.

“It means he is part animal now. In Ling’s case, he’s part impala.”

Ling felt his stomach turn. He wanted to punch Fu in the shin, and throw Chen out a window.   
He didn’t want to be an animal, he wanted to be a human person. He didn’t want horns, or a tail, or fur, or anything like that. He wanted to be Ling, not an impala, or any other animal.

How could he be Ling when he wasn’t even completely human anymore?


	2. Chapter 2

Edward’s head throbbed painfully, his wrist rubbed raw from metal bindings, and his automail arm so heavily damaged it refused to work. His breathing was shallow, and his mouth tasted like iron. His bindings kept his wrists as far apart as possible, just an extra level of restraint for the young alchemist. He felt so weak that even if he had the means to transmute, he wouldn’t have been able to muster up the strength to do so. Beside him lied a proud lion, sedated and chained to the floor as well to prevent the beast from attacking.

“Wh… Why are you…” Edward’s voice was hoarse, and it hurt tremendously to speak. “Why are you doing this to me?”

“Just think about it, Fullmetal.” The alchemist in front of him just sounded like a psychopath. In Edward’s mind, he was a perfect example of one of the most deprived, sick types of people. “Someone as gifted as you spending the rest of your life as my chimera. My creation. A chimera, not only capable of speaking, but able to do alchemy like a human as well. I’ll be rich, Fullmetal, we’ll be rich.” 

Edward felt absolutely disgusted. To do something so horrible, just for money.

Edward felt like an idiot for letting this happen to himself, but the man had been so kind to him and Alphonse. Oh, Alphonse; what if the crazy alchemist had tried to hurt him instead? 

 

When he first met this man, he knew he had reminded him of something horrible, but he had pushed those thoughts to the deepest corner of his mind. Now Fullmetal knew what this man had reminded him of; Shou Tucker. 

Nina. 

Alexander. 

He was going to end up just like them, wasn’t he?

No. He’d be able to get out- there was so many ways in which he could get out; He’d find a way to get out of his bindings and run, or Alphonse would find him, or Mustang would, or something would happen, and he’d be free and safe and warm in his hotel room with his brother in minutes. Or maybe that was just what he was telling himself to minanilize his anxiety. 

That’s when he noticed the transmutation circle which he and the lion had been placed in the middle of start to glow. At first it was faint, just a dull white glow that Edward passed off as of part of a possible head injury. But then it got more noticeable, then even more so. The small blond boy started to struggle in his bindings. 

An unbearable pain ran through every inch of Ed’s body. It felt like every single atom in his body was being torn apart, then pushed together, then pulled apart again. Edward imagined this might have been what Alphonse had felt when he had been pulled from his physicall body. He felt helpless.

This man was serious about making him a chimera. It was happening, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Edward panicked; He screamed until he thought his throat would start bleeding, struggled until many layers of skin had been removed from his wrist, but it was all in vain. He caught one last glimpse of the alchemist which had doomed him, his emotions swirling like a hurricane. The lion next to him let out a mighty roar just as the blond felt his consciousness slip away from him.

When the young blond finally awoke, he felt his chest tighten and his breathing almost stopped entirely. 

He was trapped in a tiny cage that was coated in both dried and wet blood, and he had been stripped down completely, shivering on the cold, hard floor. The cage was so small he couldn’t even move a centimeter without bumping into some part of it. He also found moving in general to be quite difficult. He took a glimpse down at himself, and found that his automail had been removed. 

Every second that past made taking a breath a lot harder for Edward, like bricks were being stacked on top of his chest. 

The young alchemist yelped and jumped as something soft and fluffy brushed against his back. The lion. It was there, somewhere, and it was going to kill him. Alphonse would be completely alone from now on, Winry would be devastated, and he wouldn’t be able to see his little brother’s smile ever again. But time passed, and the lion never made a move. 

Edward was ashamed of how long it took him to realize that the tail was attached not to the body of a lion, but to his own. The bastard had done it. Edward had been transformed into this delusional alchemist’s chimera.

The now part-lion boy began to wonder where exactly he was, and how long he’d been there. And if he’d ever get to leave. 

Edward whimpered as his stomach growled. He wondered when, if ever, he would get feed. The lion waited for what seemed like days in his cramped cage, waiting for someone, anyone, to at least give him some food. 

When the door did finally open, all Edward would receive would be shock and horror. 

The alchemist was standing in front of Edward’s cage, and a whip was held in the tight grip of the older man’s boney fingers. The man reached down and opened the cage door.

“Come out, my sweet little pet.” His tone of voice sent a tsunami of replusanation through Edward. He didn’t move from his current spot, partially because he didn’t want to, and partially because he couldn’t.

“Now, now,” those boney fingers interlaced themselves into Edward’s beautiful, golden hair, “we don’t like boys who don’t do as their told.”

The older man yanked Ed out of his cage, and threw him face first into the cold, hard concrete floor. 

The lion yelped, and quickly rolled onto his back, only to be met by three agonizing lashes to the stomach. Edward just about screeched in pain, but managed to repress it to just a loud whine.

“Show me your full potential, Edward Elric. Show me your more animalistic body.” The smirk on the man’s face and his tone of voice almost sent the lion into a full-blown panic attack.

Edward didn’t comply with the older alchemist’s wishes, primarily because he didn’t know how to. The man gritted his teeth in anger, and lashed the lion with the whip so many times that he lost count. But Edward had counted. He had counted thirty. The young boy on the floor, who couldn’t have been older than thirteen, had curled into himself, and was now producing a river in the old man’s basement.

The man grumbled to himself, before kicking Edward in the gut and locking him back in his cage. 

The weeks had passed on, and Edward slowly became more obedient. By the second week, Ed had learned how to take full advantage of his new lion abilities, and was more than willing to show them off for his creator in exchange for not getting beaten, and actually getting feed. He wasn’t getting feed much, but it was enough to survive.

He was forced to eat like a dog, out of a small bowl filled with whatever scraps the older alchemist deemed suitable for him.

As time passed and Edward learned to be more obedient, the older man’s treatment and abuse of Edward just got worse and worse.

By his sixth week in captivity, Team Mustang had located where Ed was being held, and had staged a raid. Edward was barely conscious for most of said raid, but he heard his little brother’s terrified and rage filled screams, and smelled burning flesh and hair. There was no way it could be anything else. 

When Edward finally came to again, he was in Central hospital, laying in an uncomfortable bed, with Alphonse to his left, and Jean Havoc to his right. The intense sounds of panic and guilt in his brother’s voice, as if he would break into tears if he was able to, made the older brother want to cry for him. 

“How you feeling, Fullmetal?” Jean asked, lighting another cigarette. 

Ed couldn’t give a spoken response, at least an intelligible one, but he slowly shook his head. 

“Understandable. You were hurt pretty bad.”

Edward gripped the sheets of his hospital bed so tightly his knuckles turned white. He felt warm, wet glops roll down his cheeks, and quickly moved to wipe them away. All he could think about was the torture the alchemist had put him through, and the panic attacks it induced. 

A large, cool hand gripped his left hand.

“Brother, please don’t cry.”

Edward didn’t listen, he just kept crying, knowing this trauma would keep him in constant pain for the rest of his life.


	3. Chapter 3

“Brother,” Alphonse whispered as he poked his older brother’s shoulder, “we have to leave. It’s late.”

Edward rubbed his eyes as he glanced up from his book, and at the clock hanging from the dark wooden wall of the Dublith Library. He frowned slightly, and his fuzzy ears twitched. Edward quickly flipped the hood of his jacket onto his head.

“Man, I didn’t realize it was so late.” He replied. “We’re probably gonna have to run back or teacher’s gonna put us six feet under.”

The two brothers sprang to their feet, and rushed to put their books away, before sprinting through the rows upon rows of bookshelves. Alphonse’s heavy armour clanged as he bounced down the stairway connecting the large library to the street below.

The Elric brothers raced down the near-empty Dublith city streets, desperate to make it to their teacher’s house on time.

“Edward,” Alphonse gripped his older brother’s forearm, forcing the smaller boy to slow down almost to a halt. Ed turned to the side as his younger sibling pointed to his right. On his right was an alleyway which seemed to make the perfect shortcut to the home of Izumi Curtis. 

“Great plan, Al.” Edward replied quickly as he bolted into the alley, his younger brother’s armour banging on the ground behind him.

The Fullmetal Alchemist almost found the run therapeutic, until-

“You there,” a strange voice bellowed.

The brothers instinctively skidded to a stop, and examined their surroundings to find the source of the voice. A few feet to their left stood a short man wearing nothing but rags and a hood with a huge, bulbous nose.

“Spare a few coins for a poor beggar?” The man asked.

“Sorry, we don’t have a lot of money at the moment.” Ed responded quickly before grabbed Al’s wrist and continuing to run away.

“How could you be so cold-hearted?” The man glanced behind him, and caught the eyes of his accomplice briefly. He then turned to chase after the brothers.

“That’s it, Bido.” The impala chimera whispered to himself, peeking further around the corner of the alley to get a better view.

Ling recoiled in shock as the blond alchemist sent Bido flying into a pile of trash cans. His hood had fallen to rest on his shoulders, revealing a pair of beautiful, fluffy, lion ears. 

Fuck, he’s hot AND buff. Ling thought. The young impala wanted to stay and watch, hoping his ally would find a way to rip Edward’s clothes and give him a glance at that probably toned chest, but decided against it.

He leaped up to a windowsill of the apartment next to him, which was about ten feet above his head, and pulled himself up on to it. The impala jumped to the neighbouring window, then sprang to the roof of the building to his right. His long legs made the dash across the familiar rooftops very short, and very easy.

The young boy took a few minutes to admire the skyline from the roof of the Devil’s Nest bar, where he had been living for the past year and a half. The place had become home to him, and the people dwelling within he now considered family.

Watching sunsets or sunrises, and stargazing were amazing from the bar’s roof. Ling had vowed to himself that if he ever fell in love, he wanted to stargaze with whoever that person happened to be in the spot where he currently stood. He doubted a monster like him with horns and hideous ears would ever find love, but he could always hope, right?

Right?

Ling sighed, and walked over to the hatch that the owner of the bar had installed just for him. He opened the hatch, and climbed down to the floor.

“Daaaad,” Ling yelled, “I’m home.”

“How was it?” Greed replied. “Did you find them?”

“Yeah. And one of them’s hot.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah, he’s blond, he’s buff, and he’s pretty, so he’s pretty much perfect. Oh, and he’s got these cute little fucking,” Ling moved his hands to the side of his head and used two fingers to make ears, “cat ears.”

“So my son is a furry.”

“I’m a fucking chimera.”

“Oh. Right. Go… do your homework until supper is ready.”

“I don’t go to school.”

“Oh, right.”

Ling let another soft sigh escape his lips as he headed to his bedroom. The young boy immediately collapsed onto his bed, face first, and let himself get lost in his thoughts.

He couldn’t get the thoughts of his old life and his home out of his head. Ling’s entire body tensed as that same burning pain from all those years ago rushed through every muscle in his body, then returned to rest in his lungs. 

As the pain became more intense, Ling’s lungs became closer to ceasing their functioning.

His thoughts drifted to his body. He looked like a beast, with his long horns being what caused most of his hatred. His horns were like a large, red zit on the face of a man who hadn’t bathed in ten years, or like the rotten cherry on top of a sundae of revolt.

Ling had always known that if he had never been cursed with his noticeable chimera features, he would be an attractive man. He probably would have found somebody who would actually love him by now. He’d probably be happy.

Suddenly-

Bang!

A loud crash of thunder practically vibrated the walls of the dark guest room of the Curtis house.

Upon hearing a series of soft whimpers, Alphonse reached up to turn on a nearby floor lamp. The light that bathed the room revealed the older Elric brother attempting to hide himself in the sheets of his bed. Despite his attempts to hide, Al could clearly tell that his older brother was shaking almost violently.

“E-Edward?” The younger of the brothers said quietly. “What’s wrong?”

The only response Al was given was a series of louder whines and whimpers coming from his older brother.

Edward could hear Al’s armour creak as his brother approached. His mattress shifted as the younger brother sat at the elder’s feet. Alphonse leaned over, and gently removed the sheet concealing the lion chimera.

“Hey, brother,” He whispered softly as his large, cold hand cupped his older brother’s shoulder. “Can you talk to me?”

Ed’s head shook rapidly, and attempted to hide his small body in the comfort of the sheets again, but Alphonse didn’t let him.

“Can you look at me, please?” Al asked, rubbing his brother’s back in a soothing manner, rubbing an intricate pattern of circles into his brother’s flesh. It was the same pattern their mother had used to comfort them.

Edward’s eyes slowly shifted to stare at his brother.

“Do you want me to keep talking to you?”

The blond nodded quickly.

“So, I read some interesting stuff in one of the books in the library. It said that there’s a group of alchemists in a city in the south that are researching using alchemist to modify the genes of plants to make them more weather resistant and make them produce more crops per harvest.”

Ed wasn’t even really processing the words that were coming from his younger brother, he was just comforted by the fact that his brother was there with him.

“Anyway, it’s getting late. You should go to bed, brother.” 

“Mm, yeah. Uh… thank you, Al.”

“You’re welcome. Now get some sleep.”

The blond nodded, then rolled over onto his side and let his eyes fall shut. The calming sounds of rain beating against the exterior walls lulled the lion chimera peaceful slumber.


	4. Chapter 4

Alphonse stood outside the Curtis’s butcher shop, a broom in his hands. He carefully swept the storefront, doing his best to ensure the stone street was practically shining.

A crumpled ball of paper fell from the sky, and landed at the foot of the young boy’s polished armour. 

“Huh?” Al muttered to himself. 

He picked up the crumbled ball, and scanned the surrounding area. The litterbug culprit appeared to have fled the scene. 

A sudden flash of curiosity struck Al, and he decided to flatten out the litter and see if it contained any writing before tossing it. If he was able to, he had no doubt that the words written on the page in his hands would have sent a shiver up his spine and caused goosebumps to appear on every inch of his skin.

Ling sat cross legged on the dirty roof of a factory on the west side of Dublith. Martel stood with her arms crossed on the ground beneath him, while Roa sat on a wooden crate next to her, leaning on his mallet. Delcetto laid on a ledge a few feet under the roof, so relaxed that Ling thought he might fall asleep. They had been outside this smelly, abandoned factory for at least an hour, and the young impala was starting to get impatient.

“Do you think he’ll even come?” Ling asked, leaning back on his palms.

“Dunno,” Roa shrugged, “maybe he’ll bring company.”

After taking a few deep sniffs, the dog chimera muttered, “He’s here. And he came alone.”

“He’s either pretty brave, or pretty stupid.” Ling replied.

The louder the clanging of Al’s armour became, the more nervous the young impala got. 

Delcetto was already on the ground when Ling finally found the courage to jump as well. He landed flat on his feet behind the armoured giant, a few feet to the dog chimera’s side. Roa quickly rose to his feet, ready to confront the young Elric.

“We’ve been waiting for you.” Delcetto smirked.

“‘We know your secret. Meet us at the abandoned factory on the west side.’” Al paused, glancing around at the chimeras surrounding him. “Are you the guys who wrote this?”

“That’s us. There’s a lot we know about you.”

“Good. I want to find out about myself too.”

“Lets just get to the point already.” Ling’s tone was whinier than he intended it to be. “Come with us, and we might tell you what you want to know.”

“But my teacher says I’m not supposed to go with strangers.” Al muttered.

There was a long pause before the dog chimera spoke up once again. 

“How old are you?”

“I’m fourteen.”

“Fourteen year olds are able to think for themselves. Look at our little Ling,” he nodded towards the impala, causing a wave of discomfort to almost physically knock him off of his feet and send him flying down the street. “He was only fourteen when he decided to join. If you wanna be a man then you should make your own decisions.”

“You’re right!” Al almost seemed to be beaming. “I really should make my own decisions!”

“Now you’re getting it!” the dog chimera’s smile just about stretched from ear to ear. “So just come with-”

Before he could even finish his sentence, Al’s giant hand raised up, and smacked him to the ground.

“I’ve decided to make you guys tell me instead.”

Roa growled, and smashed the head of his mallet onto the ground in an attempt at intimidation.

“So it comes down to force, does it?” His eyes narrowed, and his voice deepened the way it only did in the rare occasions when Roa drank a bit too much, and got in a fight with whoever happened to be closest.

The ox readied his mallet for attack, and Martel readied her dagger.

Alphonse Elric took a running start, and-

And ran right past them, dashing through the dirty, broken halls of the abandoned factory.

Ling was the first to process the situation, and chased after the soul-binded armour. It didn’t take long for the impala to hear his fellow chimeras racing behind him.

Despite the Elric’s head start, the Xingese chimera was only a few feet behind him at all time. It didn’t matter how many twists and turns the path they followed contained, he was always there.

Eventually, Alphonse hit a dead end. He halted and turned. The soft gasp that escaped from the boy indicated to Ling that he had expected to have some time before one of them had found him.

“Looks like your plan didn’t quite work out, eh?” The impala smirked.

Alphonse’s hard, metal expression seemed to harden as he clenched his fists.

“Why… Why do you even work with them?” He muttered. “You’re throwing away your… your time being a delinquent with those people.”

“It’s… It’s better than the alternative.” Ling whispered.

The Elric boy felt a twinge of sympathy for the young chimera. Edward had been through something similar, and although Ed still acted very much like how he did before, there was still something fundamentally different. Something that wasn’t like him.

He couldn’t help but think that something like this had happened to Ling.

Suddenly, Ling jumped at him, knocking his head off of his body, and knocking his body to the ground. The Xingese teen crawled into his body, and made himself comfortable.

Ling kept the armour suit still until Martel and Delcetto arrived. The impala and snake chimera promptly switched places, and transported Alphonse back to the Devil’s Nest.

The chimera trio, plus the younger Elric brother sat in silence in a back room in the bar, until Martel decided to start a conversation. The impala wasn’t interested until he heard Al’s surprised gasp of-

“But that’s impossible! You can’t- You can’t make human-animal chimeras! Or at least, not successfully!”

“How rude! If all of us aren’t successes, than what are we?” Martel responded. She sighed, then continued, “I used to be a soldier, you know. I was critically wounded in the south border war. The military dragged my half-dead body to one of their laboratories and used me for their experiments.”

“Is that what happened to all of you?” 

“No,” Delcetto muttered as he prepared his pipe, and lit it. “If you ask me, I think little Ling story’s much more fucked up than ours.”

The young boy looked at the Xingese teen. 

“Can… Can you tell me what happened to you?” Al’s voice was laced with morbid curiosity, and fascination.

“F-Fine,” the impala sighed, “back in Xing, there’s fifty clans that switch who’s in power. Usually, the next ruler is the heir that fulfills the monarch’s desires first. So, my clan wanted to… give their heir an advantage over the others, and so they fused me with an impala when I was younger.”

The rain beat down on the young boy, so hard that he felt as if it would rub his skin raw. His body shook and he sniffled, hugging his legs closer to his body in a desperate attempt to find warmth. 

He was so hungry and dehydrated he felt sick. 

“Hey, kid.” A deep voice echoed, and the small impala quickly looked up. “Are you alone?”

Ling nodded slowly in reply, and a frown spread across the face of the man in front of him. He flinched slightly as the bigger man picked him up and rested him on his broad shoulder.

“You’re a chimera, I can tell.” The big man’s voice had softened. “I’ve rescued a bunch of others like you. My name’s Greed. And you are?”

“L-Ling,” The Xingese chimera replied softly.

“Ah, well Ling, don’t worry. I’ll keep you save.”

The young, short, blond boy with the cat ears and red coat suddenly rushed into the bar, yelling and screaming about… something. Ling had stopped paying attention to anything happening, at least until the young blond jumped at Delcetto, punching him hard in the jaw.

Ling swiftly got to his feet as Ed attempted to attack Greed. In one quick movement the impala stepped in between the two and drew his sword, using it to deflect Edward’s attack.

“Damn it, Ling,” Greed growled, “Go with Roa. I don’t want you getting hurt.”

Ed jabbed the blade of his automail hand towards the impala’s stomach. The sharp edge grazed Ling’s skin before he could block it, and he hissed in pain.

“Damn it!” The homunculus yelled. “Why can’t you just do what you’re told?” 

He gripped the chimera’s shoulder tight enough to leave bruises, and tossed him about ten feet into one of the room’s hard, cold walls. Ling’s head jolted back into the wall, and the breath was abruptly forced out of his lungs.  
He huffed as the fight raged on in front of him, placing a hand on his bleeding stomach and applying as much pressure as his weak body could manage. Ling’s vision was hazy, and he felt as if he would slip out of consciousness at any moment. 

Suddenly, Greed was standing in front of him. Loud gunshots rang through the room, and bullets ricocheted off his ultimate shield. Greed lifted the impala off the floor, leaped through the thin vent to the garbage disposal. Greed dashed to the sewers, laying Ling’s half-limp body on the ground before leaving to search for Martel and Alphonse.


	5. Chapter 5

Edward sprinted through the sewers as quickly as his short legs would let him. He was tempted to change into his lion form and run on all fours, but decided against it. He couldn’t let anyone seeing him like that, out of fear that the military would take him away.

“Al!” He screamed, “Alphonse! Where are you?!”

Ed halted so unexpectedly that he just about tripped over himself. The sight in front of him caused a bolt of panic to run through the lion chimera. 

Al’s body was propped up against a wall, and the chestplate of his armour was hanging open. The chimera that had jumped in front of Ed during his fight with Greed was curled up inside of Alphonse, and an adult women with short hair lay next to him, bleeding enough to replace the blue of the ocean with red.

Edward wasted no time; He shoved the two into Al’s armour, and began to haul them slowly up to the surface.

A loud sound that resembled nails being dragged slowly down a chalkboard brought Ling back to the world.

“Gree…” Ling whispered.

“You awake?” An unfamiliar voice buzzed around in the impala’s ears. “Get up, I need help.”

“Wh-Who are you?” 

“The name’s Ed. Now get up and help me haul my brother out of here.”

The impala put his hands on what he thought was the ground, but instead of the cold, hard stone he expected, he felt something warm, wet, and soft. He turned his head, expecting to see a puddle behind him. 

Ling screamed, pushing himself out of Alphonse’s armour and crawling a few feet away. Edward glanced at the impala, and a frown spread across his face.

“Mar… Martel, what… what happened to her?” It sounded like Ling had attempted to yell, but was too weak to do so.

“I-I,” Edward hesitated, “I don’t really know.”

The Xingese boy curled into a ball, bringing his legs as close to his chest as possible and wrapping his arms around them. He pressed his forehead into his knees to conceal his face. He began to feel as if the world was stacking boulders on his back, causing breathing to become almost impossible. 

The choked sobs that started to escape Ling’s lips prompted Edward to gently lay down Al’s armour. He approached the impala slowly, placing his hand gingerly on his shoulder. It wasn’t much, but Edward hoped to provide at least a small bit of silent comfort.

Ling suddenly stood up, pushing past the lion to stand by Alphonse’s armour. Horrible thoughts splashed around his head, like a tsunami of negativity destroying the coast of his cognitive thought.

“L-Let’s get out of here.” The impala muttered, moving to grab the limp left arm of Al’s armour. Edward quickly moved to grab the other arm, and continued to drag his brother’s body away.

Ling attempted to help Edward haul Alphonse out of the sewer, but his weak arms weren’t really much help. The blood stains they passed frequently weren’t exactly helping either. 

The sickly sweet smell of human blood clung to Ling’s nostrils like rich perfume, so strong it smothered him. He stepped away from Edward and Alphonse, and rested his forearms on the nearby wall. His head slowly moved to rest on his arms as he started to gag.

“H-Hey, are you okay?” Ed asked, briefly reaching out to rest a hand on the impala’s shoulder.

“Tell… Tell me something. Delcetto, Roa, Gr-Greed… are they-are they dead?” Ling replied softly.

“I… I’m not sure, but I know some of them are.”

“Fuck!” Ling smashed his fist into the wall, leaving a red stain behind.

Ed flinched as the impala’s fist repeatedly smacked the hard, stone wall, leaving it more bloodied every few seconds. The lion moved forward, restraining Ling’s arms behind his back. He pressed his forehead against the taller boy’s back.

“Listen, I know it’s hard to lose the people that you love, but hurting yourself like this is only gonna make it worse.” He said gently, hoping to provide some comfort.

“How would you know?” Ling snapped. There was a pause before Edward continued.

“My brother and I lost our mother when we were younger. I went through a phase like this at the beginning too, hell I still have scars from it. So, trust me when I say that placing all the blame on yourself and hurting yourself is just gonna make it even harder heal.” 

The two stayed silent for a long time, the warmth and pressure of Edward’s forehead pressing against Ling’s back providing a strange sense of comfort. His head started to feel fuzzy and heavy, and reality seemed to fade.

“I’m home!” Greed shouted as he closed the door to the Devil’s Nest bar. “I found a new family member for us too!”

Delcetto was the first to greet them, dashing to the door to meet his new family member.

“What is he?” Delcetto muttered, moving closer to sniff the young chimera.

“He’s an impala. His name’s Ling.” Greed replied, patting both of Ling’s shoulders simultaneously. 

“He looks like a cute little thing,” Martel smiled, peeking at the impala from behind Delcetto’s back, “he’s my little brother now.”

“That was already the plan, Martel.” Greed chuckled. “Now, seeing as you like him so much, why don’t you take him to one of the spare rooms and get him comfortable?”

“You got it, Greed.” Martel smiled, reaching out to grab Ling’s hand. “Come with me, little guy.”

Martel half-lead-half-dragged the smaller chimera from the entryway to a hallway off of the bar’s lounge. As soon as he stepped foot into that hallway, it was like he had stepped into a new building entirely; the walls were painted in warm, inviting colours and were lined with what looked like family photos, each one featuring more people than the last. Flowers and houseplants were placed in various corners or on small tables throughout the hall.

Martel stopped at one of the last doors in the hallway.

“Alright Ling, this is where you’ll be staying.” She said kindly. “The bathroom’s just across the hall. If you have any other questions, don’t be afraid to ask either Greed or me, okay?”

Ling nodded.

“I’m sure the two of us’ll get along really well, Ling.”


	6. Chapter 6

Ling’s head throbbed, and he let out a soft groan. His entire body felt stiff, so he stuck out his arms to stretch.

“Brother, I think he’s awake.” A quiet voice whispered.

The impala’s eyes sluggishly opened, and he carefully scanned the room around him. At first, he had thought the cream-coloured walls were those of the Devil’s Nest, but a picture on the wall of two unfamiliar blond boys proved him wrong. Greed only hung up pictures of the other chimeras, and those boys definitely were not chimeras.

“Hey, can you talk?” Ling felt as if he recognized that rough voice, but it couldn’t be, could it? It couldn’t be that hot blond guy with the cat ears. 

Oh, how wrong he was.

He locked eyes with the lion chimera. Those shining, golden irises mesmerized the impala.

“Are you gonna talk or what?” Ed continued.

“Pretty,” Ling muttered.

“Wh-What?” The blond’s face quickly changed from its normal pale tone, to a red that resembled the shade of his jacket. 

“I said that-that your eyes are pretty.”

Edward opened his mouth to speak, but a flood of unintelligible sounds were all that escaped his lips. He stumbled back a few steps, continuing to mutter to himself. The more he talked, the closer the noises spewing from his mouth started to sound like words.

“I-It’s not like you… you’ve got a pr-pretty… pretty face or anything.” His voice started to get louder as he talked. “I-I’m not gay!”

“That’s a shame.” Ling paused, seemingly unfazed by the blond’s freak out. “My head hurts. Where am I?”

“You’re in the Curtis house.” Al replied, knowing that his disaster of an older brother would find a way to fuck up even saying that.  
“I wanna go home. I’m leaving.” The impala slowly started to pull himself out of bed.

Al placed his big hand on Ling’s chest, pushing him back down onto the bed. 

“You can’t go back there.”

“Why… Why not?”

“The military’s searching the place.” Ed said, having calmed down a bit from his flustered freak out. “They’re probably gonna shut it down.”

“But that place was my home, a-and I need to go back.” 

“I know.” Edward paused, then sighed. “You need to move on though.”

“I can’t! That place was my home, I-I need to go back. Greed’ll be worried about me.”

“Greed is dead. You need to move on.”

Ling was about to respond, but Edward cut him off. 

“Move on.”

They sat in silence as Ling’s head began to spin once again, his mind a buzzing mess of questions. Where would he go now? What should he do? How was he going to survive without his family? Could he move on?

“You’ve got two good legs. Use them.” The lion concluded before walking out, shutting the door perhaps a bit too loudly afterward.

It seemed like hours had passed until the large, cool hand of Alphonse Elric gripped his shoulder.

“I’m sorry about him.” Al said in a soft voice. “He means well, I promise.”

Ling simply nodded.

“Uh, maybe you should get a bit cleaned up? There’s a bathroom across the hall. By the time you’re out of the shower our teacher’ll probably have supper ready.”

The impala nodded again, carefully pulling himself off of the bed. He stretched his stiff muscles after Alphonse had left the room, then headed to the bathroom. He closed and locked the door behind him. Ling stripped down, putting his clothes in a pile in the corner. He stepped into the shower, and let the warm water cleanse his body. His eyes fell shut, and he spent the next few minutes to just focus on his breathing.

_In, out._

_In, out._

_In, out._

Ling ran his fingers through his thick hair, from his scalp down, and froze. A wave of panic ran through his body as his hands moved back to the top of his head. A question ran through his mind.

_Where were his horns?_

He jumped out of the shower, ran to the mirror above the sink and stared into it. His horns were gone, fucking gone. He let out a stressed whine, quickly moving to grab at his hair. 

In his haste, he knocked a glass container off the counter. It shattered into a thousand pieces, producing a sound that scratched at the impala’s ears like nails on a chalkboard. He stepped back until he hit the wall behind him, and let out a series a whimpers.

He didn’t know why he was so heavily affected. He _hated his horns._ He _hated what they reminded him of._ Shouldn’t he be happy they were gone?

The door creaked open, and a certain lion poked his head into the room. 

“Hey, are you-?” Edward’s eyes widened when he spotted the impala curled up in the corner, shivering, resembling a baby animal in the rain who had lost its mother. “What happened?” 

He carefully and quietly approached Ling. He leaned down in front of the other boy, and placed his gloved hands gingerly on Ling’s shoulders.

“What’s wrong?” Ed asked.

“My… M-My ho-orns. Where,” Ling just about choked on his own words, “whe-ere are they?”

“I had to cut them off before I got you out of the sewers. The military would’ve taken you away if I didn’t.”

The horrific stories the other chimeras had told him, about how they were beaten and abused, and used in truly awful ways. He felt as if he should thank the lion for it, for keeping him safe, but his words seemed to leave him. 

Suddenly, a warm towel had been wrapped around his shoulders. He glanced up, and locked eyes with his fellow chimera.

“Get yourself dried off and come get some food.”

Ling nodded slowly, pushing a lock of wet hair behind his ear. He hugged the towel closer to his body, feeling a strange sort of comfort from the piece of fabric.


	7. Chapter 7

Edward leaned against a wall near the bathroom door, playing with his pocket watch as he waited for Ling to reappear. He didn’t know what it was that made him so concerned about this stranger. Maybe it was because they were both chimera?

His ears perked up when he heard the door open, and he peered over. Ling’s long, soaked, hair was left down to lay unneatly on his shoulders.

“You feeling better?” Ed asked.

“A little. Uh,” The impala paused, “thank you for… all of this. For helping me when you could’ve easily just left me to die with all of the others.”

“I couldn’t just leave you to die. It’d be… just wrong. An-And there’s people in the world who care about you, and they want to see you again.”

“You know,” a small, gentle smile spread across the impala’s face, “in Xing it’s customary to kiss the face of someone when you want to thank them.”

That was a lie. Ling just wanted a kiss.

“O-Oh? Well, then I guess…” The lion’s face started to turn red as a tomato once again. “Y-You can kiss me then.”

Ling’s smile grew wider. He leaned down, and gently kissed the shorter boy’s left cheek, then his right, then finished with a kiss on the forehead. Ed quickly turned his head away in an attempt to hide his intense blush, but his attempts were unsuccessful.

Edward’s ears twitched adorably, and Ling couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and touch them. So he did.

Ling stroked his ears slowly. They were surprisingly soft and smooth, like the most luxurious silk sheets imaginable. But what surprised Ling the most was when a gentle sound escaped the lion’s throat; A gentle purr.

“You… You can purr?” Ling sounded genuinely amused. 

“U-Uh, yeah. It’s-It’s embarrassing, I know.” Ed replied, his expression turning to a scowl.

“Embarrassing? It’s cute. You’re like a house cat. You’re even small enough to be one!”

“Small? Who the hell are you calling small?!” He yelled. “I can kick your ass! I’m a lion, you know!”  
“Aw, you’re even temperamental like a house cat.”

“I should’ve let you die in the sewer.”

“Edward!” Izumi shouted from the kitchen. “Supper’s ready!”

“We’ll be right there, teacher!” Ed replied. “Come on, let’s go.”

He reached down and grabbed Ling’s hand, dragging the impala behind him as he walked to the kitchen. Edward plopped down on one of the wooden chairs at the kitchen table, licking his lips as a plate of food was placed in front of him.

“Sit down and eat, Ling.” A tall woman with black hair said gently. “There’s plenty to share.”

The impala nodded, taking a seat in between Ed and a large man. The black haired woman placed a large plate of rice, chicken, and vegetables down in front of him.

“Wow, this looks really good. Thank you!” Ling smiled.

“You’re welcome.” She smiled back. “My name’s Izumi. And you are?”

 

“Ling.” He muttered in between mouthfuls of rice.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Ling.”

The two boys shoved huge forkfuls of food into their mouths quickly. 

“This is so good! Thank you, miss Izumi!” Ling said.

“Yeah, thank you teacher.” Ed added. 

“You’re welcome, boys, now go rest for the night.”

Ed and Ling were ready for a nice, long night night of rest, when they realized; They only had one bed. 

“Uh,” Ling cleared his throat, “I’m-I’m willing to sleep on the floor.”  
“Are you sure about that?” Ed asked, concerned. “Won’t that be bad for your back?”

“I’ll be fine. I’ve slept on worse flooring than this.”

Edward’s eyebrow rose. “What do you mean?”

“Well since I came here from Xing, I ended up sleeping on a lot of streets until Greed saved me.”

“O-Oh, uh, well are you sure about sleeping on the floor?”

Ling nodded in reply. 

~~~~

The impala was surprised at how quickly Edward had fallen asleep. Ling’s mind was so over active and filled with happy memories than had became painful, and the image of Martel’s dead body under him, that it was impossible to sleep. 

Ling’s head flicked over to glance at the lion’s bed when he heard what sounded like a restrained shout. He moved to turn on the lights, then looked back at the bed.

Edward was sitting, hunched over his own body, shaking violently, and gagging as if he was going to throw up his guts right there and then. Ling sprung to his feet, dashing over to the lion’s side.

“Edward?” The impala gently laid a hand on Ed’s shoulder. The lion didn’t reply, but his shaking gradually lessened. 

After a few more minutes those golden eyes shifted up to meet the impala’s darker irises. Ling noticed that his face had seemingly been drained of its colour.

“S-Sorry,” the lion muttered. The amount of panic in his voice severely worried the impala.

“Don’t apologize, Ed. What happened?”

“It-It was just-just a nightmare. It happens sometimes, but-but I usually don’t… have this bad of a-a reaction.”

“Do you want me to get you something? Like a glass of water or anything?”

“N-No!” Ed hastily reached out and gripped Ling’s arm and squeezed it hard. “Just-Just stay here wi-with me, please.”

“Yeah,” Ling nodded, “I’ll stay right here as long as you need me to.”

The lion laid back down, and scooted over. He patted the mattress next to him, and, when Ling didn’t get the message, he pulled the impala down next to him.

“I-If you’re gonna stay next to me then you might as well lie down.”

The impala nodded, his face flushing for the first time in front of the lion. It took a few moments for the awkward feeling to begin leaving Ling’s mind, but it didn’t leave completely until the blond next to him had fallen asleep again. Edward looked so peaceful, so content, it brought a smile to the Xingese boy’s face.

The closer Ling slipped to unconsciousness, the closer he scooted to Edward, until his arms were wrapped protectively around the smaller boy. It was almost as if there was an instinct subconsciously directing Ling to give Ed affection, to shower him in it, to protect him, in a way.

With his arms wrapped snugly around the lion’s warm body, and his nose buried in his that luscious blond hair, sleep quickly swept Ling off his feet.


	8. Chapter 8

The feeling of a cold hand shaking the young lion shocked him awake. His eyes quickly opened, and he rapidly glanced around the room. His eyes ultimately fell back to the impala next to him.

“Edward, you filthy slut.” Al’s sweet voice caused a deep blush to rise to his cheeks.

“Wh-What?” He responded.

“You’ve only known him for a day and you’ve _already slept with him.”_

Ed muttered a series of excuses, raising his legs up and literally kicking the impala out of his bed.

“I don’t even like guys.” The lion growled.

“That’s a pretty hard claim to prove, seeing as how I just found you-”

“Alphonse, I swear, if you don’t shut your mouth I will shove your face into the ground.”

~~~~

“I need to go back to the Devil’s Nest.” Ling said, making a beeline for the front door.

“Ling, I already told you that you can’t.” Ed replied, reaching out to grab the impala’s wrist.

“I need to see if anyone else survived!” 

“You’ll get yourself killed! Or worse, the military’ll lock you in a laboratory and abuse you until you drop dead!”

After another few minutes of arguing, Alphonse decided to speak up.

“Brother, it’s been long enough that the military’s probably gone.”

Al had a point; it had been four days, and the Devil’s Nest wasn’t that big. By this point their investigation was most likely over.

“Fine.” Edward sighed. “Let’s go.”

Ling smiled, sprinting out of the front door. The Elrics chased after him, desperately attempting to keep up with the over excited impala.

Ling suddenly halted at the door of the bar, and stared at it. The way he abruptly froze made it seemed like everything had suddenly hit him again. It had hit him that his family was dead, and the military had most likely just raided his home.

The impala reached for the doorknob, and twisted it open. He poked his head inside, and looked around. He turned back to look at the Elric’s, and the dread he was feeling was obvious in his expression.

“Can you two stay out here?” Ling asked. “I’ll be careful, I promise.”

“Yeah. But if we heard anything or you take too long, we’re coming in.” Ed raised his fist as if he had intended to threaten his fellow chimera. 

Ling nodded, heading into the bar. The sound of the door slamming closed triggered a looming feeling of anxiety within the lion.

“Are you okay, brother?” Al asked.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine, Al.” Ed responded, glancing up at his younger brother, then back at the door. “I’m just a little nervous. Maybe we shouldn’t have done this.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine. There’s no signs of the military here anyway.”

Ed was unsure, but still nodded just to shut him up. 

They stood there for what seemed like hours, and it was evident that Ed was getting impatient. He rocked back and forth on his feet, rolling from the tip of his toes to the back of his heels.

“We should go in an-and check on him.” Ed muttered, looking up at Alphonse. “I’m worried.”

“Let’s go in then.” Al swiftly opened the door, and Ed bolted inside. 

“Ling?!” Edward shouted. “Where are you?”

When Ed received no reply, his chest tightened from the anxiety. The lion dashed from room to room, screaming for Ling. He ran down a hallway filled with potted plants and framed pictures, sticking his head into every room. The overwhelming dread only got worse when he reached the last door, and stuck his head into the room behind it.

There was blood splattered on the walls, and a framed photo laid on the floor, the glass shattered. He walked over to the frame, and picked it up. He examined it, and found a picture of Greed with a wide smile on his face, his arms wrapped around a younger Ling, who was grinning as blindingly bright as the sun. Edward felt his heart breaking more the longer he stared at that photo.

He carefully removed the photo from its frame and shoved it into his pocket. 

“Brother, did you find him?” Al questioned, suddenly appearing behind the lion chimera. 

Ed shook his head rapidly, mumbling, “No,” under his breath multiple times.

“E-Edward?” Al reached out and gripped Ed’s shoulder. Apparently his brother had noticed his tears before he did.

“Lo-ok, Al!” Ed shouted, violently pulling the picture of Ling and Greed out of his pocket, and pointing at the young impala. “I-It’s another person I fu-fucking failed to keep safe!” 

“Broth-”

“L-Look at your big, st-strong older brother, Al! I n-not only let you lose your body, but I-I let an innocent little girl die, and let god knows wh-what happen to Ling!”

“It’s not your faul-”

“I _let_ him go in without us! If I hadn’t let him do that, nothing would’ve happened to him, be-because we would’ve been there! W-We could’ve found off an-anyone who wanted to hurt him!”  
“Brother, it’s not your fault. We don’t even know if anything happened yet.”

“O-Oh yeah, bullsh-shit! H-Have you _s-seen_ the blood, Al? H-He’s probably h-hurt, or dead, o-or something, bec-cause of me!”

“Let’s go through the bar again. Maybe we missed him?”

Ed nodded, shoving Ling’s picture back into his pocket before turning to walk out.

~~~~

The door slammed shut behind him, causing the impala to flinch. He had been shoved into the trunk of a strange car by three men in military uniforms. Ling had tried to fight back, tried to scream for Edward and Alphonse’s help, but the men had stuffed a balled up cloth into his mouth, and slashed a knife across his chest.

He was still bleeding, although not as heavily, and some sort of tape had been placed over his mouth. His wrists had been tied tightly behind his back, the rope digging into and burning his skin. He wasn’t overly worried; Ed and Al would find him, and get him out of there before they left.

He could hear and feel the car start to move, and his heart dropped into his stomach. The Elrics weren’t coming. These men were actually going to kidnap him.

He raised his legs up, and began to kick at the roof of the trunk, hoping to at least make even noise to alert someone that something was wrong. He did this for what felt like days. His legs began to hurt, and his eyelids felt heavy. He tried to keep kicking, but his burning legs and increasing lightheadedness forced him to stop.The impala rolled onto his side, and allowed multiple soft whimpers to escape his mouth. 

He remembered a story Martel had told him about her time as a military test subject.

_“They forced us to do a lot of tests. They’d subject the chimeras whose animals were used to cold weather to freezing temperatures to see if they could survive. They did the same thing to the ones who were used to hot climates.” She said. “I was in the middle of one of their high temperature experiments when Greed saved me. If it wasn’t for him, I definitely would’ve died._

_“They even thought that chimeras might be immune to certain diseases, so they’d expose some of us to then, and just hope we’d survive. That’s the test that killed the most of us.”_

Ling shuddered at the thought of being forced to take part in any of those tests. He didn’t want to die in such a horrible way, but it seemed more and more likely that one of those tests would be the end of him.


	9. Chapter 9

Ed’s hand moved quickly, rushing to write down every thoughts that appeared in his brain on the small pages of his journal. His brain seemed to be producing new thoughts at ten kilometers per second. His hand was starting to cramp, but he kept writing.

A loud whistle erupted from the train as it halted at the platform of the Central train station. Edward hurried to pull on his jacket, and shoved his journal into his bag. He sprinted off the train, Al following close behind. 

The sun would be setting soon, and Edward was determined to visit some of the laboratories in Central City. He had thought that since the fifth laboratory had been used for experiments relating to human transmutation, then maybe one of them would have been used to hold chimeras.

“Brother, are you sure about doing this?” Al asked.

“It’s already been more than a week, Al. If we don’t find Ling quickly he’ll die!” Ed yelled.

“Edward-”

“I’m not letting anyone else die because of me, Alphonse!”

“It’s not your fault, brother.”

Ed stopped, and turned on his heels to stare at his brother. Rage boiled over in his eyes, like a pot of water that had been left on a hot stove for far too long.

“Tell me one more _fucking time_ that whatever happened to Ling _isn’t_ my fault.”

“It’s not your fault.”

A loud growl fell from the chimera’s lips, and Alphonse noticed a visually change in his brother he had never seen before; His canines seemed longer and sharper, and his pupils momentarily dilated, and Al thought for sure that Ed would jump at him and attack. 

When his younger brother took a step back, Edward seemed to snap out of it. The lion’s enraged look was replaced with an apologetic one.

“Al, I’m-I’m sorry, I don’t know what got into me.” Ed’s voice was heavily laced with remorse.

“It’s… It’s okay, brother. You didn’t- you didn’t mean it.” Al replied.

“Yeah, yeah,” he paused, running his hand through his messy hair, “we need to get going.”

Before Al could even respond, his older brother had bolted down the street, and Al had no other choice but to follow him.

The run to the first laboratory seemed shorter than it should have been, but the lion didn’t question it. He halted, staring at the giant building for a moment. The front gate, which should have been locked and closed for the night, had been left wide open. Edward decided not to question that either, and walked through the gates, stalking around the perimeter of the giant brick building.

It didn’t take long for Ed to find a vent close to the ground. He removed the vent cover, and crawled in, attempting to navigate his way through the lab from above. 

Edward crawled through what felt like kilometers of vent, until he eventually found another vent cover, and peered into the laboratory under him. He heard a soft whine under him, and leaned closer to the vent cover to get a better look. There was a woman sitting on the floor of the room under him.

“Hey,” Ed banged on the vent in an attempt to get the woman’s attention, “look up.”

The women met eyes with Ed, and blinked in shock.

“Wh-Who are you, kid?” She asked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“My name’s Ed. I’m looking for a certain chimera.” He replied.

“And who would this chimera be?” The women raised an eyebrow.

“His-His name’s Ling. He’s Xingese, got long black hair, and he’s an impala.”

“Don’t think I’ve seen him. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Xingese chimera.”

“Damn it,” Edward slammed his fist into the hard metal of the vent beneath him. “Do-Do you know where the government might keep chimeras?”

“The government doesn’t keep chimeras anywhere else, but he might’ve been taken by a private seller.”

Edward’s throat tighten and his eyes widen. “What,” He cleared his throat, “what do you mean by private seller?”

“There’s a few people that’ll find chimeras, train them, and sell them as pets to rich people who’re willing to pay high prices.”

Images of the bastard old alchemist that had made him what he was flashed through his mind. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen to Ling if he had to endure the beatings and torture that Edward had already went through. He just wanted Ling to be safe, warm and happy, preferably while in his arms.

“Hey,” The woman under him said. “Hey kid, you okay?”

“Wha-Wha? Oh, yeah, I’m okay. Uh, so with these private sellers, do you know where I could find any of them?”

“Well, the two I know of keep their chimeras in the outskirts of East City, and around a small town called Youswell.”

“What’s your name?”

“Valerie Bauer. And you are?”

“Edward Elric.”

“Are you a chimera too? What are you?”

“Yeah, I’m… I’m a lion. You?”

“Ferret.”

Ed nodded as he removed the vent cover, and inched forward. He stuck his upper body out, and reached towards Valerie.

“Come with me, I’ll get you out of here.”

The woman reached up and grabbed Edward’s hand, jumping up as the young lion tugged her up into the vent.

“Follow me, I’ll get you out of here, Valerie.”

She nodded, following the young blonde as he crawled back to the exit.

“Did you find out anything, brother?” Alphonse asked as Ed crawled back out of the vent.

“Yeah, we gotta go see Mustang first thing tomorrow morning. We’re gonna have to go to East City and Youswell.” Ed replaced, rubbing his gloved hands together.

~~~~  
A large, cold hand struck the impala, causing his head to toss to the side forcefully. If he hadn’t been blindfolded, he would’ve attempted to attack the bastard.

“If you would’ve just been a good boy and behaved instead of biting my friend,” The infuriated tone of the man in front of him filled Ling with spite, “then maybe I won’t have to hit you so hard. Now come on, let’s get you to your new home.”

The man yanked the impala up, tugging Ling behind him into some unknown location. The man tossed Ling into a tiny room, his back hitting a hard wall behind him. He heard the door slam shut, and felt an overwhelming anxiety fill him from head to toe. 

“How much are we gonna get for that one?” The man asked.

“Hm,” a woman’s voice echoed, “how young did you say he was again?”

“He’s fifteen or sixteen.”

“I’ll give you 850000 Cenz.”

“Alright. Give us the money and we’ll get going.”

Ling started to squirm, hoping to loosen the restrains on his wrists. He wiggled and twisted, tugged and pulled, but the only thing he managed to accomplish was horribly burning his wrists on the rope.

The door opened, and Ling heard the click of high heels on the floor as someone approached him. The person leaned down, and removed the blindfold covering the impala’s face.

In front of him was a beautiful woman with shoulder length dark brown, almost black, hair and light green eyes.

“Aren’t you a cute one.” A small smile spread across her face. “I could probably get close on 3000000 Cenz for a young one like you. Tell me, what’s your name.”

“L-Ling,” he muttered.

“I’m definitely going to have a fun time with you, Ling.”


	10. Chapter 10

Roy let out an exasperated sigh and rubbed his temples as the tiny blond burst into his office, demanding two weeks off work.

“Why do you need it this time?” He asked, folding his hands together and laying them on his desk.

“I’ve got non-work related research to do in a few places in the east. Might take me awhile.” Edward replied, flopping back onto Roy’s couch and putting his feet up on the coffee table.

“I’ll give you three weeks if you get your feet off my coffee table.”

“You’ve got yourself a deal, Mustang.”

The young lion got up to leave, but froze when he heard Roy continue in a soft voice.

“Before you leave, Edward, how have you been? It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you.”

“Oh, uh,” Ed was caught off guard by Roy calling him by his first name. He only ever did that outside of a workplace setting, and even then it happened very rarely. “I’ve been… I’ve been okay, I guess.” 

“How has Al been?”

“Why do you suddenly care so much about us?” Roy felt a painful migraine start to develop as soon as the Elric snapped.

“I care because you keep getting in trouble. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m not gonna get hurt, so piss off.”

“I know about how you broke into first lab last night, Fullmetal. Do you know how dangerous that was?”

“Look,” Edward threw his arms up in the air, not even brothering to question how Roy on how he already knew about the lion’s trip to the lab. “I didn’t get hurt, so it doesn’t matter. I’ve learned my lesson, and I won’t do it again.”

“Why the hell did you even break into the laboratory in the first place?” The disinterested tone of the younger alchemist caused anger to slowly build within the Flame Alchemist, and it definitely was showing in his voice. “That lab is no place for someone like you, Edward! Do you know what would’ve happened if a guard caught in there?”

“I wasn’t caught, so it doesn’t-”

“It matters, Fullmetal. They would’ve locked you away to rot if you were caught. There’s people who care about you, who need you. You can’t be so reckless.”

Edward stayed silent, lowering his gaze to the floor.

“Tell me,” Roy continued softly, “why did you break into the lab?”

It took almost half an hour for Ed to explain the situation, to explain how he met Ling and what happened afterward. A frown spread across Roy’s face. He knew the young alchemist wouldn’t take what he was about to say well, but it had to be said.

“Is this Ling boy really worth all this time and trouble?”

It was as if a volcano of fury and rage had erupted inside the young chimera. He spit unintelligible, angry words at Roy. He slammed his fists hard into his the colonel’s desk, and stomped out.

~~~~

Edward and Alphonse were on the next train to East City. Ed pouted and glared out the window, while Al sat silently across from him.

“Stupid fucking Mustang,” The blond muttered for the hundredth time.

“Will you tell me what you’re upset about now, brother?” Al asked.

“Mustang, that stupid fuckin’ bastard, said that Ling wasn’t fucking worth doing this. What the fuck does he know?”

“Yeah,” Al nodded, “if Mustang felt the same way about Ling that you did he’d be in jail.”

It took a few minutes for the meaning behind Al’s statement to click in Ed’s head.

“For the last fucking time, I’m not fucking gay, Al!”

“This would be a lot easier for both of us if you just admitted that you liked guys.”

“I like girls.”

“Oh, so you like both then. Good to know.”

“I’d fucking smack you if it would hurt you more than it’d hurt me.”

“I love you too, brother.”

Edward muttered to himself, pulling his hood closer to his face and nuzzling into it. He let his body fall to the side and closed his eyes, opting to take a nap rather than continue to deal with real life.

_Soft light shined in from the open window, causing the impala’s hair to glimmer like polished obsidian. Edward leaned in, pressing his forehead against Ling’s as the Xingese boy pulled him in to lay closer._

_It seemed as if when they laid there in Ed’s bed in the late hours of the evening that nothing could ever harm them._

_“I love you, Edward.” The impala whispered._

_“I love you too.” Ed whispered back. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting himself relax in the warmth of Ling’s arms._

_Ling’s warmth abruptly vanished and was replaced with an unbearable cold. He opened his eyes and scanned around him. Edward was now in a dark room made entirely of almost black stone bricks that were beginning to crack. Large, red puddles were scattered around the room._

_Edward quickly spun around when he heard the light padding sounds of footsteps behind him. Now standing in front of him was Ling, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth, horrible bruises covering his body. Thick streams of blood poured from his left eye socket and right nostril._

_Edward stayed frozen in place until this nightmarish version of the impala stood no more than half a foot away from him, towering over the small lion._

_Ed’s legs began to shake violently, not taking long to give out on him. Ling grabbed him by the bangs, forcing his head up to stare at his bloodied face._

_“It’s too bad your love for me isn’t strong enough to save me.” Blood poured out of Ling’s mouth as soon as he opened it, “It’s just like what happened to your mother.”_

_His voice was chillingly cold, and it shook Edward to his core._

Edward suddenly sprung up, his breathing hitched. When he looked around and realized that he was still on the train, with Al in front of him, he calmed a little bit.

“Another nightmare?” Alphonse asked. Ed replied with a nod.

“I’m scared, Al. What if we don’t find Ling quick enough?”

“We’ll find him. Don’t worry, brother.”

“But what if we don’t? What if they kill him?” 

Alphonse didn’t have an answer. He was scared for his brother. Al didn’t know if Edward would be able to handle losing another person. Maybe that was why Ed cared so much about saving someone he’d only known for less than a week.

“Brother, how do you really feel about Ling?” He asked.

“What do you mean, Al?”

“I mean-I mean do you… Love him, Ed?”

“I… I don’t know if you could call i-it that, but I…” The blond struggled to put his feelings into words. “I-I like him in a way that- well, I’d imagine it’s similar to the way mom felt about dad when they first met.”

Alphonse nodded understandably before he spoke.

“I’m glad you told me, brother. Don’t worry, Ed, we’ll be able to save Ling.”

“Yeah. Uh, thank you, Al.”


	11. Chapter 11

“Ling, why won’t you just be a good boy and behave?” The woman training him, who he had been forced to call ‘Madam’, pouted.

The impala just bared his teeth and growled at the woman. He wanted to jump at Madam, rip her apart and escape, but the chains around his wrist prevented him from doing so. It was like she was teasing him with the chains; he could move just enough to get close to her, but not enough to attack her.

“My, my, such a violent little cutie. It was a good idea to put you in those chains.”

“F-Fuck you.” Ling muttered, promptly earning him a hard slap on the cheek. “I-I’d let you b-beat me to death before I ever behaved for you.”

“You’ll regret that, Ling.” Madam turned on her heels, and slammed the door behind him.

Ling celebrated internally for a brief moment before those words crept back into his mind. What was Madam going to do to make him regret this? He mulled that over in his head for what seemed like years, his anxiety growing more intense by the second.

The click of Madam’s heels alerted Ling to her return. The impala glanced up, and seen a small jug in her hand, liquid splashing around inside of it.

“Wh-What’s in the jug?” He asked quietly, backing away from Madam as much as he could.

She placed the jug on the floor next to the impala, then placed her thumb just under his eyeball, and her index finger on his eyelid. Madam forced Ling’s eyelids to stay open. She reached down and grabbed the jug again, quickly peeling the lid off before placing the opening very close to the impala’s eye.

“Wh-What are you doing?” Ling asked, his voice frantic.

Madam gave no response, instead just tipping the jug back until the liquid hit the impala’s eyeball. The liquid burned intensely, and his vision from that eye quickly began to blur. 

Screams of agony erupted from Ling.

“Madam! Madam, ple-please!” He yelled. “I-It hurts s-so much!”

Madam moved the jug away from the young impala’s eye, and placed it back on the floor.

“Have you learned your lesson?” She asked coldly.

“Y-Yes, I-I have, Madam.” 

“Good.”

~~~~

The Elrics’ trip to East City had provided them with nothing more than almost a week of wasted time, and many horrible panic attacks for Edward. During said attacks, Ed was incapable of keeping his chimera abilities in check; His nails would grow sharp like daggers, his canines would increase to twice their normal size, and large amounts of fur would appear all over his body.

Edward didn’t stop shaking during the entire train ride to Youswell. Alphonse was incredibly worried, but any attempt he made to comfort his brother just caused him to snap.

Ed had began to sprint towards the nearest exit before the train had even stopped. Al was hot on his brother’s heels, hoping to stop him from doing anything too stupid, like breaking a window and jumping off the train while it was still moving. Instead, Ed stood in front of the door, shifting his weight from one foot to the other rapidly and whining like a scared kitten. 

As soon as the door was open, Edward was gone, darting down the street to find any building that looked even somewhat shady. The first building he decided to check was a small hut constructed of old bricks and wood. 

Ed was tired of taking things slowly when looking for Ling, so he threw caution off of a mountain and kicked the front door in. 

“Brother, people are going to get suspicious if you keep being such a chaotic disaster and breaking things.” Al muttered, quickly using his alchemy to fix the door before following his older brother into the darkness of the hut.

If it wasn’t for the rotting railing still being somewhat intact, the lion chimera would’ve tumbled down the stairs.

“Hey, Al,” Ed turned to yell over his shoulder, “there’s a basement. Let’s go check.”

“We should bring a light of some sort, brother.” Al replied. “Do you have a-”

“Don’t have time, Al.”

Ed jumped the railing, and even though he landed on his ankle wrong, he kept running down the stairs. Once he was at the bottom, he ran his hand across the wall until he would feel something that might be a door. 

The lion’s heart skipped a beat when he heard a soft groan echoing through the room. He dashed to where he believed the sound had come from, and put his ear up to the wall. He heard a series of soft coughs, then a soft mutter of, “I’m so hungry.”

Ed clapped his hands together, and pressed them to the wall. The bricks seperated and reformed to make a doorway for him. 

“Ling?” Ed whispered, desperation filling his voice.

“Wh-Wha- Edward?” Ling replied weakly. 

“Oh my fuck.” Edward stepped closer to the sound of Ling’s voice. “I’m so glad I found you. A-Are you okay?”

The impala stayed silent, hearing a series of clicks on the floor. Edward glanced over his shoulder, and seen a woman with a lit lantern in one hand, and a gun in the other now standing a few feet away from him. It was Madam.

“Who are you?” She asked in a threatening tone. “This private property.”

“Are you the bitch who kidnapped Ling?” The lion growled.

“Excuse me? Who do you think you are, you little punk?”

“DON’T CALL ME LITTLE!” Edward screamed, using his alchemy to transform his automail arm into a blade. 

“Leave right now or I will shoot you.”

“Leave now? Without beating the shit out of you? Like hell I’d do that.” 

Edward lunged forward, about to slice the woman in front of him, when she fired her gun. The shot hit Ed in his automail leg. He dropped to one knee, growls pouring from his lips. Edward headbutted Madam in the gut as hard as he could.

Madam raised her fist, and brought it down hard onto the lion’s head. Ed yelped, quickly backing away from Madam. He looked up, his heart dropping into his stomach when he seen Madam walking closer to Ling, her gun aimed at him.

The light of her lantern allowed Edward to see how badly Ling had really been hurt; He had cuts all over his body, his skin which had once been sunkissed from long days outside in the Dublith heat was now extremely pale, and his left eye was looked glassy and red.

Madam pressed the gun to Ling’s forehead.

“Why do the cute ones always have to be more trouble than they’re worth?” She asked to no one in particular.

“M-Madam, please don’t-don’t hurt him anymore.” Ling replied weakly.

“Hurt him? I’m going to have to murder him for all that the trouble he’s caused me! Do you know how much it costs to cover up a murder Ling? And he’s a famous person too! It’ll be at least triple the price to get my men in here to cover up the murder of the Fullmetal Alchemist!” She let out an annoyed grunt. “And I’ll have to kill his fucking younger brother too.”

Ed quickly pulled himself to his feet and sprinted towards this evil woman. Like hell was he going to let her hurt Al, or Ling, or anyone else while he was around. He pulled his arm back, and jabbed Madam in the back of the head as hard as he could. By the time Edward noticed that he had used his automail arm, it was too late to stop it. 

Madam collapsed to the floor, a red lake quickly forming around her head. Ed paid no attention to her, instead stepping closer to Ling. He reached down to grab the impala’s hand, and felt the cold metal binding wrapped around it. He frowned.

“Oh, Ling,” he muttered, “what did she do to you?”

The impala didn’t respond, he just leaned into Edward’s chest and let out a soft whimper. Ed wrapped his arms around Ling, and held him for a few minutes.

“Br-Brother?” Al’s voice echoed. “Are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah Al, I’m fine.” Ed turned to look over his shoulder, seeing his younger brother standing by his makeshift doorway. “B-But it looks like Ling’s hurt really badly. We need to get him out of here.” 

Alphonse nodded, moving closer to the small, feeble impala. 

“We could probably weaken the chains using alchemy.”

“Yeah,” Ed nodded, “that’s what I was thinking.”

Before Edward could make a move, Al had broken Ling’s chains and the impala’s cold arms were wrapped tightly around the lion’s warming body. 

Ed scooped the Xingese boy into his arms, and attempted to stand up. His automail leg gave out, and he dropped to his knee. 

“F-Fuck,” Ed muttered.

“Brother, are you okay?” Al asked.

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine. I just-I just took a shot to my leg.”

“We need to get you to Winry.” 

Alphonse leaned down, picked up both Edward and Ling, and began to walk out of the hut. 

“Wh-What are we gonna do with Ling?”

“We’ll see if Winry will let him stay with her and granny. I’m sure that after he rests for awhile he’ll be able to do small jobs here and there, and eventually he’ll be able to support himself at least a little while he lives with the Rockbells.”

“Uh, y-yeah, sure. Ling, is that okay with you?”

Ling just nodded, cuddling closer to the lion chimera.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I've had this chapter finished for like a week and just forgot to ever post it. Sorry! I'll try to post a little consistently in the future, even though this fic is most likely nearing its end.

The repetitive sounds of the train’s engine as it chugged along to Resembool calmed the lion chimera. Ling lay asleep practically on top of the him, Ed’s arms wrapped securely around him. He reeked of Edward’s cheap cologne, probably because the impala had borrowed some of his clothes. He couldn’t deny it, Ling looked amazing in his red jacket and white button up shirt.

Ed was happy to have Ling back, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that not only was it his fault this had happened in the first place, but it was his fault that Ling had been hurt so badly. If he had just gotten there sooner, and if he just wasn’t so slow, then maybe Ling wouldn’t be half blind now.

Ling let out a soft whine in his sleep, snuggling into the lion more. Ed blinked, frozen momentarily, then intertwined his fingers with Ling’s hair. It felt greasy and gross, but it still somewhat soothed him.

“If anything ever happened to him again I don’t know if I’d be able to control myself.” Ed muttered, balling his hands into fists full of Ling’s hair.

“Don’t talk like that brother. He’ll be fine with the Rockbells.” Al reassured. 

There was a long pause before Al continued. 

“I don’t really get this, Edward. You haven’t even known him for that long, yet you’re so attached to him.”

“Shut up, Al!” Ed snapped.

“I’m sorry brother, but I just don’t know if this is the healthiest thing for you. I mean, if you really want to do this-”

“CAN’T YOU JUST LET ME BE HAPPY FOR ONCE IN YOUR GOD DAMN LIFE, ALPHONSE?!”

Al recoiled as much as he could in the cramped train seat. His beloved brother had never snapped at him like that. Edward’s expression quickly softened, and he lowered his gaze to the floor.

“I-I’m sorry, Al.” He said softly. “I don’t expect you to forgive me after all of this, but I...” he stopped, taking a deep breath and running a hand through his messy hair. “I don’t want to hurt you anymore because of any of this.”

Alphonse stayed silent. He wanted to respond to his brother, but he didn’t know what to say to him. 

“I deserve the silent treatment. I’m so sorry, Al. After we make sure that Ling has a safe place to stay we’ll go right back to our usual work, and I won’t even mention him until after we get our bodies back.”

“You-You don’t have to do that for me, brother.”

“But I do, Al. I’ve been so selfish lately, I need-”

“Brother, you’re not being selfish for wanting to help someone other than me. It’s fine. I’m sure getting our bodies back can wait another few weeks so you can help someone else you care about.”

Ed looked into Al’s eyes for a few moments, then glanced down at the impala that was still somehow asleep in his lap.

“Hey brother, when we get to Resembool we should stay for awhile. You have a week and a half of vacation left, right? Let’s stay with Winry and Granny for a week and just rest.” 

“Are you sure, Alphonse? You’d be okay with that?”

“Of course, brother. Plus, I’m pretty sure that your automail needs a bit of maintenance.”

A small smile spread across the lion’s face, his mind filling with imagines of mornings sleeping in while in Ling’s arms, late nights talking and getting to know the impala, and stuffing his face with Pinako’s cooking.

~~~~

Alphonse had to carry the two chimeras to the Rockbell house. Ling was still sound asleep, and Edward’s leg had almost completely stopped working.

Den’s barking had alerted Winry and Pinako to their arrival, and they were soon on the porch to greet the trio.

“Who’s this guy?” Winry asked, pointing at the impala.

“He’s a new friend, and long story short, he needs a place to stay for awhile. Can he… stay here?” Ed replied.

“Did you break your automail again?” Winry’s voice was laced with anger.

“N-No,”

“I’m going to examine it, and if there’s anything more than minor repair work needed, he can’t stay here.”

Winry turned and stomped back into the house, slamming the door behind her.

“Don’t listen to her, Ed.” Pinako smiled slightly. “Of course he can stay here, whether your automail is broken or not.”

“Thanks granny,” A wide smile spread across the lion’s face.

“Come in, let’s get your friend to a place where he can sleep comfortably.”

~~~~

“Ow!” Ed flinched as Winry pinched his thigh, hopefully by accident. “Geez, can you be a bit more careful?”

“Or you could stop being such a baby.” Winry replied, putting the wrench she had previously been using down, and rummaging through her tools.  
Ed looked away, scowling.

“So, this guy that you brought here, what the _fuck_ is he?” Winry asked.

“Oh, well, I met him in Dublith not long ago, and we’ve become friends.”

“That doesn’t explain what he is. He doesn’t look… entirely human. And why does he have to stay with us anyway?”

“Well, he’s-he’s a chimera too, and he got caught up in some bad stuff. He doesn’t have anywhere else to go, and I-I don’t want him to end up on the streets.”

“So you brought him here so he could be our problem?”

“I-I guess. He’s a nice guy, and I’m sure he’ll be able to help you and granny out around the house.”

Winry nodded. It seemed like something was bugging her, but Ed didn’t want to press and risk upsetting her even more.

“Edward, Winry!” Pinako’s shouted. “Dinner’s ready!”

~~~~

After stuffing their faces full of delicious food from Pinako, Ed and Ling retired to the lion’s bed. Edward had his arm behind his head, his feet resting on the wall. Ling laid the opposite way, his face only a few inches away from Edward’s.

“So how are you enjoying your time with the Rockbells so far?” The blond asked, turning his head to look the impala in the eyes. The damaged tissue of Ling’s eye turned Edward’s stomach. It wasn’t that the injury disgusted him, it was that he was disgusted by himself for letting Ling get hurt so badly.

“It’s great! They seem really nice.” Ling replied, a soft smile plastered on his face.

“Yeah, it’s good that you’re liking it here. I don’t know if we’d be able to move you anywhere else if you didn’t like it.” 

“My only complaint is that Winry seems a little-a little-how do I put this?” Ling paused, biting his lip. “Crazy.”

“Yeah, she tends to get violent when she’s mad.” Ed chuckled softly. “I don’t blame her for it most of the time. I do a lot of stupid stuff to piss her off, and if I were her I’d probably wanna beat me over the head with something metal too.”

“Edward,” Ling frowned, “you making her mad frequently doesn’t excuse her hitting you and throwing things at you.”

Ed looked at Ling like he had just told him that unicorns were real and he had tamed one just so the lion chimera could pet it.

“What do you-you mean?” 

“I mean that no matter what you do, you are not to blame for any abuse you suffer. No matter how much or little, you are not responsible in any way for the abuse someone puts you through.”

Edward pressed his lips together hard, blinking repeatedly to force the tears forming in his eyes to disappear. 

“I-I’m sorry,” he sniffled, “I-I’m such a li-little bitch.”

“Nonono,” Ling put his hand on the lion’s warm cheek, “cry it out, Edward. It’s good for you. You’re safe to cry around me.”

The dams broke, tears pouring like waterfalls from Ed’s golden eyes. Ling didn’t try to shush him, or wipe his tears away like the lion had expected he would. The impala just held him, rubbing gently, soothing circles into his back.

Edward rolled onto his side, burying his face in the Xingese boy’s chest 

“Feel better now?” Ling asked as the blond’s tears stopped.

“Y-Yeah,” Ed replied, his voice soft and cracking.

“U-Uh, this might be a little weird, but do you mind if I kiss your forehead?”

“Oh, u-uh… go ah-head.” 

The Xingese boy leaned in closer to Ed, and placed three gentle butterfly kisses on his forehead. The lion’s face grew redder than his signature coat, and he looked away for a brief second. 

The two laid in silence for a few moments before Edward spoke up.

“U-Uh, you know Ling, you’re… you’re pretty-uh, wise.”

“You think so?” Ling smiled, “I’m glad. My dad always tried hard to teach us to always be compassionate and kind.”

“Your dad sounds like a great man. At least, better than mine.”

“What makes you say that?”

“My dad’s a bastard. He left us when Al and I were little, and didn’t even bother to come home for our mom’s funeral.” Edward pressed his fingers to his palms so hard his knuckles began to turn white. “Our mom wasted away waiting for him to come back. And he never did. He never loved us. Any of us. Not Al, not my mom, especially not me.”

“I’m sure he loved you-”

“Then why the hell did he leave?”

“I don’t know, Edward, but what I do know is that it isn’t your fault.”

“I never said it was.” Ed grumbled, crossing his arms and turning away from the impala.

“But it’s what you’re thinking, isn’t it?”

Edward’s shoulders tensed up. Could this Xingese boy be reading his mind? No, Ed knew that was impossible, but it sure as hell seemed like it was happening.

“Your father leaving wasn’t your fault.” Ling continued. “You may have flaws like everyone else, but you’re an amazing person, Edward. I mean, you-you barely know me, yet you went so far out of your way to save me.”

Edward quickly turned to face the impala again, throwing his arms around him. Ling placed one hand on the back of the lion’s head, and rested the other one on his upper back. He held the smaller boy for a few moments. He wished those moments could last forever.

“Well,” Ed cleared his throat, “enough about me. Tell me more about you, Ling.”

“Well, uh, you may not believe this, but I’m actually a prince.”

“Yeah, and I’m six feet tall.” The lion chuckled adorably.

“No, seriously, I am. I’m from the Yao Clan back in Xing. I… was actually turned into a chimera to assist me in trying to get the throne.”

“You’re not lying?”

“No, I’m not.”

“How has… how has no one taken you back to Xing by force yet then?”

“Mainly… Mainly because of Greed.” 

“What do you mean?”


	13. Chapter 13

_Ling sneezed for a third time in a row. He groaned, and pulled the blanket on his bed up to his chin._

_The door creaked open, and the young impala quickly glanced over to see who was there. Greed stood in the doorway, two steaming mugs in his hands.  
“Hey,” he said softly, “how you doin’ kiddo?”_

_“B-Bad,” Ling replied, sniffling._

_“Well, I brought you some tea.” Greed placed one of the mugs down on the bedside table, then sat at the foot of the impala’s bed. “Do you want anything else?”_

_Ling shook his head before taking a sip of the hot tea. It tasted fantastic. The only way he could describe it was like honey mixed with a loving mother’s hug._

_“Are you sure there’s nothing else you need?”_

_Ling shook his head again, but Greed noticed how the impala shivered._

_“I’ll get you another blanket.”_

_The older man rose to his feet, and exited the room. Ling brought his mug upto his mouth, and inhaled deeply before taking another sip. His body relaxed, and he felt as if he would fall asleep right then and there._

_Suddenly, there was a loud smash. Ling quickly scanned his room, and seen that his bedroom window had been broken. Two figures dressed in all black were crawling in through the broken window._

_Ling curled into his blankets, pulling them over his head and hoping what he was seeing wasn’t real. He couldn’t fight in this condition, he could barely even get out of bed._

_“We’ve finally found you, young lord.” That voice rang in his ears. It had changed since he had last heard it, but he still recognized it._

_“L-Lan Fan?” He muttered softly, poking his head out from under the soft comfort of his blanket._

_“We’re here to take you back to Xing.”_

_“I don’t-I don’t want to go back. Please, don’t make me go back there.”_

_Lan Fan reached out to grab the impala’s wrist, but she froze in place when a large, cold hand wrapped around her neck tightly._

_“What was that you just said?” Greed’s voice echoed, terrifying even Ling. “Because from the sounds of it, you’re making my son very uncomfortable, and I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”_

_Lan Fan stood still, gagging as Greed squeezed her throat harder. Fu got behind Greed, quickly pressing a blade to his neck and slitting his throat. Greed’s eyes widen, and he placed his free hand on his now slit throat, faking as if it would actually kill him._

_The homunculus smirked, hitting Fu in the head and knocking him down before he could make his next move._

_“I wish it didn’t have to come to this,” He muttered, “but you refuse to leave my son alone. I’m afraid I’ll have to be sure you can never do this again.”_

_His grip on the young girl’s throat tightened. He intended to kill this girl and the older man with her._

_“Ling, keep your head under the blankets and cover your ears.” Greed instructed, and the younger boy listened._

_Ling was shaking slightly, but he couldn’t tell if it was out of fear, or chills from his illness. He jumped when Greed’s hand touched his chest._

_“You okay, squirt?” The homunculus asked, his voice dripping with concern._

_“Wh-What did you do to them?” Ling replied._

_“You… You don’t wanna know, Ling. Drink your tea and go to bed.” He sat down on the foot of the young boy’s bed. “I’ll be right here when you wake up.”_

~~~~

“O-Oh,” Edward’s eyes were wide, “he-he killed them?”

“Yeah. I found their bodies in the alleyway later that night. Greed got mad at me when he seen me out there.”

“I-I don’t know what to say to you, Ling. That sounds horrible.” 

“I guess. I don’t know if-if I’m really upset about it. I mean, they did a lot of messed up stuff to try to get me on the throne, but they were still my family, and I loved them.”

Edward nodded, placing his hands on the back of the impala’s head as the taller boy curled up. Ling buried his face in Edward’s chest, breathing in his strong scent. 

“What cologne do you use?” Ling muttered.

“U-Uh,” Ed stuttered, “just some cheap stuff I buy at a general store in Central.” 

“Smells like home.”

“Y-You mean the Devil’s Nest?”

“Yeah. It kinda smells like a mix of Greed’s cologne and Martel’s perfume.”

“Is that a-a good thing?”

“Of course it is.” A soft, slightly sad sounding chuckle escaped the impala’s throat. “I wouldn’t have said it if it was a bad thing.”

“I-I’ll keep buying it then.”

Ling hummed softly, the smell of Martel’s perfume suddenly overwhelming his nostrils. Her perfume had smelled of roses with a hint of lavender, and he adored it. The young boy remembered sneaking into the snake chimera’s room when he was feeling down to take a whiff of the sweet liquid. The sweetness was almost sickly at times, which matched Martel’s demeanor almost perfectly perfectly.

Greed’s cologne was a different story; Greed was a rough guy, never being mean on purpose, but frequently making rude comments on accident. His cologne smelled bittersweet, resembling the sourness lemons with a hint of vanilla. While the scent was often overpowering, it became synonymous with being home and being safe for Ling.

“Hey Ling,” Edward’s cold automail brushed against his cheek, causing the other chimera to shiver slightly, “you okay? You zoned out, and you were whimpering a bit.”

“U-Uh, yeah, I’m-I’m fine, Edward. Don’t worry about me.” Ling replied, slinging his arm around the blond boy’s waist. “It’s getting late, isn’t it?”

“I mean,” Ed glanced over his shoulder to look out the window. The sun had started to set, but that usually that happened before eight pm. “Kind of.”

“I need sleep.”

“You’ve been sleeping most of the day.” Edward laughed softly.

“I’m gay.”

“Fair enough. Get some rest, I’ll be right here when you wake up.”


	14. Chapter 14

_Ling rubbed his eyes, his feet dragging against the cold floor as he walked into the kitchen of the Devil’s Nest. He plopped himself down on one of the many handmade wooden chairs placed around the huge, handmade, circular table. Greed had made all of it to accommodate his large family of chimeras._

_“You’re up early.” Greed’s voice startled the young chimera. “You hungry?”_

_“The real question, dad, is when am I not hungry?”_

_“That’s my kid!” Greed laughed. “I’ll make us some omelettes.”_

_“Are you gonna make the cheese ones with the ham and the spicy peppers?”_

_“Of course I am. The best omelettes are omelettes that hurt to eat.”_

_“Those ones are the best! You’re the best dad ever!”_

_“Well, you’re the best son ever, squirt.”_

_Ling watched Greed cook with amazed silence. The older man glanced back at him, a small smirk on his face._

_“You want me to teach you how to make Greed’s World Famous Spicy Ham Omelettes?” He asked._

_Ling jumped up, sprinting over to the counter next to where Greed was standing. He watched carefully as his adoptive father cracked five eggs into the bowl, beating the eggs until the yellow and white were perfectly mixed. The floor squeaked as Greed moved to take a jug of milk out of the fridge, removing the lid and dumping a small amount into the egg mixture. He added a small amount of salt, and a large amount of pepper before mixing again. Ling kept watching as Greed moved to the stove._

_It felt like he was working magic instead of actually cooking with how effortless he made everything look. Ling thought the uncooked egg looked like a pancake. He wanted to reach in and try some. Uncooked pancakes were good, raw cookie dough taste good, so uncooked eggs must be the same, right?_

_He reached out, about to stick his finger in the hot pan and scoop out some of the tempting raw eggs, when-_

_“Don’t,” Greed grabbed his wrist, “don’t do that.”_

_“Why not?” Ling asked_

_“Because you’ll burn yourself.”_

_The impala frowned._

_“Also don’t try to eat raw eggs. Daddy’s not raising a chaotic disaster child, okay?”_

_Ling just nodded and continued to watch as Greed added the ham, cheese, and an assortment of spicy peppers to the omelette. He then folded the egg in half, and flipped it. Greed let the egg cook for another few moments before transferring it to a plate, and cutting it in half. One half for him, one for Ling._

_As they sat down to eat their breakfast, Ling knew he’d never forget this day._

~~~~

Edward hummed to himself, stretching his arms and legs. He quickly rolled onto his side, which was harder to accomplish that he thought it would be. The blankets must’ve balled up next to him as he slept.

“Good morning, Edward.” 

Ling’s voice caused a burning blush to rise to the chimera’s cheeks. His eyes slid open, and he carefully examined the bed surrounding him. He was now laying on top of the impala’s chest, his injured eye was covered by his hair while the other stared lovingly at the young blond.

“G-Good morning, Ling. Uh,” Ed cleared his throat, “how did you sleep?”

“Pretty good.”

“That’s good.” 

Ling laughed softly, causing the lion’s heart to skip a beat. “I think if you added all the naps I had yesterday and how long I slept last night together I’d have slept for like, 20 hours.”

“Wait, what time is it?”

“A little after ten.”

“Ah, shit. I don’t think I’ve slept in this late in years.”

“I don’t think I’ve been up this early in years.”

“How do you sleep so fucking much?”

“Well, in the day I’m very full of energy, so I tend to do a lot of crazy shit. So, when I get to sleep I sleep for like 12 hours then spend all day jumping around like a rabbit on drugs, and then repeat.”

“Jesus,”

The two laid in comfortable silence for what seemed like hours, holding each other, with Ling occasionally planting a soft kiss on Ed’s forehead or cheek.

“You know, Ling,” Ed muttered, “I love you.”

“I love you too, Edward.” He chuckled softly.

“Ling,”

“Yeah?”

“Do you-do you blame me for what happened to your eye?”

“What? Of course not, Ed. Why would you think that I did?”

“I-I don’t know, maybe because it was my fault you got taken away in the first place? And my fault for not saving you in time?”

“Edward, none of it was your fault. It was mine. I should’ve let you and Alphonse come into the bar with me instead of forcing you to wait outside. There’s no way they would’ve been able to take down all three of us.”

“But-”

“Edward, hush. None of it was your fault. I love you, I’d never blame you for any of this.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course I am.” 

Ling gently placed his hand on the back of the lion’s head, stroking his golden hair soothingly.

“Why are you so nice to me?” Ed muttered softly.

“Why would you expect me not to be nice to you?” Ling replied, furrowing his eyebrows.

“I-I don’t know.” He paused for a few moments. “Maybe because… because I always thought I was supposed to end up with someone like Winry, and she gets mad at me really easily and hits me with stuff, and now-now here you are, being so nice to me and stroking my hair and stuff.”

“Ed, if I ever hit you out of anger, leave me immediately.”

“Wha-but, Ling, I-”

“No buts, Edward. Leave me if I ever do anything like that.”

“I-okay, fine.”

~~~

“I wish you didn’t have to leave.” Ling muttered.

He and Ed were sitting on the steps of the Rockbell house’s porch. Their fingers were intertwined in a comfortable fashion, and Edward leaned against the taller boy’s shoulder.

“I wish I didn’t have to go too.” The lion replied. “I’ll try to get back to see you as soon as possible, but I don’t know when that’ll happen.”

Ling gave an understanding nod.

“Brother, we should leave.” Al said as he opened the front door. “We’re gonna be late for our train.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Edward sighed, looking over to lock eyes with his love.

He quickly leaned in, kissing both of Ling’s cheeks before standing up and grabbing his suitcase.

“I’ll see you later, Ling.” He said softly.

“Y-Yeah,” the raven haired boy looked away, “bye.” 

Ed frowned; He could tell the impala was tearing up, but he didn’t have time to stay back and comfort him. The lion followed his younger brother down the dirt road, dreading that he had to abandon his lover. 

Was their love just teenage passion? Possibly, but neither Ed nor Ling cared. Or at least, Edward didn’t. As soon as Alphonse’s body had been restored, he would stay by Ling’s side until he was no longer wanted there.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea what I'm doing.

Edward and Alphonse had just stepped foot in the Rockbell house, and Ling was still the only thing on the lion chimera’s mind. Even as they sat at the kitchen table, taste testing Winry’s apple pie, Ed wondered where his lover could be. When was too soon to ask where he was? The answer was that it was never too soon.

“Hey, Winry,” Edward muttered, “where’s Ling? I wanna go see him.”

“Oh!” Winry looked as if she’d just remembered something important. “About that, uh… Ling left a few months ago. He left a note for you though.”

“Lemme see the note.”

Winry rose from her chair, and stepped over to a wicker basket filled with loose papers that sat on the counter. She sifted through the loose letters until she found the letter Ling had addressed to Ed. Winry placed it delicate on the table in front of the lion chimera before taking her seat again.

Edward wasted no time in ripping the envelope open with his teeth, unfolding the letter and reading it as quickly as he could.

_Dear Edward,_

_I wish I could’ve stayed with the Rockbells until you returned, but unfortunately I have a few things that need to be attended to back in Dublith. I don’t think I’ll be able to come back to Resembool, at least not anytime soon. If you’re willing to wait another day for me though, I’ll be waiting another for you._

_No matter how far apart we are, or for how long we have to go without seeing each other, I will still love you. Forever and always._

_With love,  
Ling_

Edward quickly folded the letter back up and slid it into his pocket.

“Winry, do you know when the next train to Dublith is leaving?” The lion asked.

“Ed, you just got back, I’m not letting you immediately go all the way to Dublith.” Winry’s expression quickly fell into an ugly scowl.

“Why not?” 

“Because I barely ever get to see you, and now you want to run off to see your boyfriend.”

“Well, you’ve seen me now, and Ling hasn’t. I’m going to Dublith.” Edward stood up, forcefully pushing his chair in before grabbing his jacket.

“Edward Elric, if you take one step out that door I am getting my wrench and beating you until you can’t leave.”

“That’s abuse.” 

Edward slammed the door shut, as if using it to punctuate his words. His feet moved quickly as he walked back to the nearest train station. Hopefully the spare change he had shoved in his pocket was enough for a ticket to Dublith. Or if he could make it to a town near the city, he could walk from there. If he couldn’t afford either, it seemed as if he would be walking all the way to Dublith. He prayed he wouldn’t have to do the latter.

After arriving at the closest train station and checking the prices, Ed discovered that what he dreaded was going to happen. He would have to walk all the way to Dublith to see his love.

By his calculations, if he walked a little over thirty kilometers a day, which would take anywhere between seven and eight hours a day, he would arrive at Dublith in three or four days. He glanced up at the clock hanging on the wall. It was five past four. He’d have time to start his walk tonight without being up ridiculously late.

Fueled by the raging passion only that could only be felt by a rebellious, gay teenager, Ed started his long, painful trek to Dublith.

~~~~

When he started walking, he thought not following the roads and attempting to cut straight through the vast, open fields would save him time. But now it had been close to two weeks, and he had found himself in Rush Valley, his body aching from head to toe. 

Perhaps today he’d just find a nice, secluded alleyway or public bench and rest for the day. He wandered through the crowded city streets, dodging automail freaks in an attempt to find a place to take a nap. After what felt like hours of wandering, he found what he had been looking for; a surprisingly dry and clean alley with a large cardboard box just sitting there, waiting for him.

Ed flattened out the box, and laid down. It was uncomfortable, sure, for at least he’d only be there for the night, at most. His eyes slid shut, and he attempted to get some sleep.

He was unsure if he had slept at all or not, when a series of soft footsteps alerted him that he was no longer alone.

“Edward?” The voice was one he recognized: it caused a brief panic to surge through the lion in tsunami-like waves. Edward sprang up, his eyes opening wide as he inspected his surroundings.  
In front of him stood a familiar blond bastard, his golden eyes filled with sympathy.

“Y-You bastard! So this is where you’ve been the whole time?” Ed’s voice was leaking with anger. “You were hiding out here, instead of spending time with your sons?! We almost died, and here you are! Trying to fucking hide out in Rush Valley?!”

“I understand why you’re mad, Edward, but I did go to see Alphonse. I haven’t been just hiding out here either. I’ve just been travelling around the country. I wa-”

“You haven’t even gone home to see mom once, have you?”

“I seen her a few weeks ago. But Ed, I want to know why you’re here. Why are you in Rush Valley?”

“Like you’d fuckin’ care.”

“This may surprise you, but I do _fucking care_. You’re my son.”

“That fact hasn’t stopped you before.”

“I know, but I don’t want it to be like that. From now on, I want to try to be here for you. If you’d let me, that is.”

“Fucking,” the lion chimera sighed, his bottom lip trembling slightly, “fine. Sure. Dad.”

Hohenheim’s arms were wrapped around his body, warming him when he didn’t even know he was cold. Edward recoiled at first, but when he heard sniffles coming from the older man, he leaned in and wrapped his arms around his father.

“Why-Why are you crying?” Ed muttered.

“Y-Y… You called me-me… dad.” Hohenheim replied.

“Does it-Does it really mean that much to you that I called you dad?”

“Y-Yes, it… it does, Edward.”

“I didn’t think you’d react that strongly.”

His father’s grip tightened slightly, a few tears wetting Ed’s shoulder. They stood silently, for what Ed thought was an awkwardly long amount of time, before Hohenheim took a back.

“So, son,” he said softly, “what are you doing here? I thought you’d be in Resembool.”

“Uhh,” Ed’s mind raced as he thought of an excuse that would sound reasonable and sane. At least to him, saying, ‘I wanted to go see my boyfriend in Dublith, but I didn’t have enough money for a train ticket and didn’t want to wait, so I’m walking there’ didn’t exactly sound like something a mentally sound person would say.

“If you don’t want to tell me, I won’t force you to.”

“Uh, no-no, it’s something I should probably tell you, dad. I’m just, you know, a bit nervous that you might think I’m crazy.”

“Ed, I’m immortal and have to listen to thousands of voicing talking inside my head everyday. Whatever it is you have to say, I’m not going to judge you for it.”

Edward laughed lightly. “That’s true, I guess. A-Anyway, uh, I have a… a boyfriend that’s in Dublith right now, and I wanted to go visit him. But the thing is, I didn’t have enough money for a train ticket, so I just started walking there.”

“How-How long have you been walking?”

“Uh, almost two weeks?”

There was a long pause before his father replied. 

“I’ll tell you what, Edward. I’ll give you the money for a train ticket, on one condition.”  


“A-And what is that condition?”

“I get to come with you and meet this boyfriend of yours.”


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AHHHH! I FINALLY MADE IT TO THE FINAL CHAPTER! HOPE YOU ENJOY!!

Edward sat across from his father, staring out the window and watching the scenery roll past him. He was hunched over in his seat, resting his head in his hand. 

All the lion chimera was capable of thinking of was the lovely impala that was waiting for him on the other side of this short train ride. As soon as he seen Ling, he would sweep him up in his arms, swing him around, and kiss him. The thought of Ling’s soft, perfect lips pressing against his own caused a fiery hot blush to rise to his cheeks.

“Uh,” Hohenhiem’s soft voice broke the silence the two had shared, “so, tell me about this boyfriend of yours, Edward. What’s he like?”

“Well,” Ed bit his lip, trying to formulate a list in his head of all of the best things about Ling. “His-His name is Ling, and he’s so pretty, and nice, and kind. He’s so fun to be around, and talk to.”

“Where did you meet this boy?”

“In Dublith.”

“What’s his family like?”

“Uhh,” how was he supposed to answer that question? Was he supposed to tell his dad that his boyfriend’s biological family were technically royalty, and that all of his adoptive family was dead? 

“What? Is that… not something that should be discussed right now?”

“Uh, y-yeah.”

“Okay. I won’t make you talk about it then.”

Edward nodded, turning once again to stare out the window. He could see the sprawling cityscape of Dublith not too far in the distance, and his face instantly lit up. He’d get to see Ling soon, and hug him, and kiss him, and hold his hand. They most likely wouldn’t arrive until the sun was beginning to set though, so he’d have little time to spend with his love that day.

Edward hopped off the train, dragging his father with him as he sprinted through the streets of Dublith.

“Edward Elric!” Hohenheim said sternly. “Where are you dragging me?”

“Ling’s place!” Ed replied, turning down a somewhat shady looking alleyway.

“Where the hell does this Ling live?”

“An old bar. Devil’s Nest.”

Ling hadn’t told him that was where he’d be, but Edward knew that’s where he was. Where else in Dublith would Ling be hiding out?

He suddenly stopped in front of the building where he thought the Devil’s Nest had been. Hohenheim stumbled because of the abrupt stop, but quickly regained his footing and straightened his necktie.

Edward examined the building around him, and his jaw just about dropped. The drab, broken down Devil’s Nest bar he remembered was now gone, and had been replaced by a lovely exterior of red walls with a lovely sign above the door. The words, ‘*The Devil’s Nest’ looked almost sophisticated in the lovely, white cursive against the black sign.

Ed reached for the door handle, his heart beginning to race. He pulled the door open, a bell chiming as he did so. The inside of the bar had changed completely; The walls had been repainted in warm, inviting tones, comfortable booths lined the walls, and a freshly polished bar sat in the back of the room. Edward couldn’t help but to stare in awe.

“I’m sorry,” said a hoarse voice, “but we’re not open ye-”

Before the lion chimera knew what was happening, he was on the floor with another person’s arms wrapped around him. His ears twitched. Ed was about to let out a growl when he heard that hoarse voice again.  
“You came to me, Edward.”

He recognized it this time.

“Of course I did, Ling.” He replied. The impala’s soft lips briefly made contact with his forehead. They laid there together on the floor, Ling on top of Ed, for a few more moments in silence.

“Should I wait outside so I don’t disturb anything?” The Elric’s father asked, his tone oozing with awkwardness.

The two returned to their feet as fast as they could, and Ling stared at Hohenheim for what seemed like forever.

“Are you related to Edward?” He asked, cocking his head slightly.

“Oh, yes, I am! I’m Ed’s dad, Hohenheim. And you must be this Ling fellow my son keeps talking about.” The older man stuck his hand out, and held it in front of Ling rigidly.

After a minute or two, Ling reached out to shake hands with the older man.

“My son tells me that you’re his boyfriend.” 

“Uh, y-yeah.” Ling rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

Ed turned to face the impala, and got a good look at him for the first time since he arrived. Ling had grown at least six inches, his horns had grown back in beautifully. He looked like a God, with his hair tied back in a loose bun, and the light blush that seemed to dust his cheeks at all times.

He stared at Ling as the impala chatted with his father. It seemed as though an eternity had passed before Ed’s love grabbed his wrist.

“Edward, come with me.” He said softly. “I want to show you something.”

Ed nodded, prompting the impala to lead him through a door into a hallway the lion thought he recognized. This was the hallway that led to the bedrooms of Ling and the other chimeras that had lived with Greed. The two climbed a ladder up to the roof.

Ling’s arm wrapped around Ed’s waist, pulling him closer to the taller man as he pointed up at the sky. Edward looked up, and gazed at the marvelous night sky. The stars were like a white rose garden in a vast, open field of dark blue and black.

“It’s a breathtaking view, isn’t it, my love?” Ling whispered.

“Y-Yeah, it definitely is.” Ed replied. “But-But I think that, uhm- you’re way more breathtaking than the sky could ever be.”

The impala looked as if his heart had melted.

“I-I love you so much, Edward.” 

Before the lion could even respond, Ling had bent down and kissed him. Both of his arms wrapped around the blond man’s lower back, and Edward’s hands found themselves resting on the impala’s cheeks. Ed wasn’t sure how long they had kissed, but he wished it was longer. He wished he could kiss Ling forever.

“I have something to ask you, my love.” The Xingese man muttered softly.

“Ask away.” Ed replied.

“I-I wanted to know if… if you’d be willing to stay here in Dublith with me, and-and help me try to help more chimeras, and run the Devil’s Nest. I want-I want to keep Greed’s legacy alive.” 

“Of course I’ll stay and help, Ling. On one condition.”

“What is this condition?”

“Kiss me again.”

The impala let out a soft chuckle, pulling the lion back in for another kiss.

~~~~

Ling rushed through the Dublith streets, holding the hood of his jacket over his head in an attempt to protect him from the rain. A loud sneeze hit his ears, and he quickly looked around. The impala spotted a young girl huddled under the awning of a nearby building. The poor thing, he couldn’t just leave her out in the rain like that. The impala jogged over, bending down beside the small girl.

As Ling got closer, he realized the girl had cat-like ears that matched her orange hair, and a tail wrapped around her little legs.

“Hey,” he said softly, “why are you out here in the rain?”

The child shrugged. “N-Nowhere else to go.”

“Are you a chimera?”

She hesitated for a moment before nodding her head.

“What’s your name?”

“Ch-Charlotte,” her voice was soft, and weak.

“I’m a chimera too. My name’s Ling. Why don’t you come with me, and stay with my husband and I for awhile?”

She nodded, and the Xingese man took her hand, leading her to the Devil’s Nest. There was a familiar bell chime as Ling pushed the front door open, ushering Charlotte into the warm building. Hohenheim was wiping the bar clean, as he usually did, but Ed was nowhere to be seen.

“Edward, I’m home!” Ling announced. “And I found us a little friend!” 

The lion chimera came running, pushing his messy blond hair out of his face. He smiled, giving Ling a quick kiss before looking at little Charlotte.

“So what’s your name?” Ed asked.

“Charlotte,”

“And how old are you, Charlotte?” Ling admired the softness in his husband’s voice. He always knew Ed would have a soft spot for children.

“I-I’m ten,” 

That shocked both of the older chimeras. Charlotte looked just big enough to be a five year old.

“W-Well,” the blond cleared his throat, “would you like some food?”

She nodded, and the two went to the kitchen to prepare the young chimera some food. Charlotte had fallen asleep at the kitchen table after she had finished eating. Ling carefully scooped her into his arms, taking her through the hallway of bedrooms. He remembered the names and faces of every single chimera that had stayed in every one of these rooms. Martel, Boa, Bido, Delcetto, and finally, the room that used to be his own. 

Ling carefully opened the door, and stepped over to the bed, the bed he used to sleep in, and tucked little Charlotte in. He turned to leave, but glanced in the mirror before he did so. Instead of his own reflection, staring back at him was none other than Greed the Avaricious.


End file.
